C.S. Sloan's Integral Strength

       Recently, there has been some renewed interest in my Texas Volume Training program that I wrote a little over a decade ago, based on the amount of views my original post has had of late and based on some emails I have received the last several months.  With that in mind, I thought it was time that I did a new post on this form of training.  What follows in this essay is an amalgam of a couple of my earlier articles on Texas Volume Training, and some insights I’ve garnered from lifters that have used it in the years since I first created it.      First off, TVT is a powerlifting program.  And though this might sound as if it’s hyperbole, and though I might obviously be biased since I came up with it, I think it’s one of the best programs anyone could ever use for powerlifting, but you have to be advanced enough to handle the amount of workload involved.  Also it’s not a program for people who only want some hypertrophy or only train for aesthetics, although it definitely will

  Variations on the 3-to-5 Method for Powerlifters      The 3-to-5 method of training is one of the most effective, and simplest, programs in all of strength training.  Almost all casual lifters that I meet or talk to—even if it’s just email correspondence—would be better if they changed from what they are currently doing to the 3-to-5 method.  Why?  Because it’s so easy to figure out, and then apply it, that it prevents the lifter from doing whatever other (typical) B.S. he or she is likely to do at the gym.      If you are unfamiliar with it, then here are the basics: Train 3 to 5 days each week. Utilize 3 to 5 exercises at each workout. Utilize 3 to 5 sets on each exercise. Keep your reps between 3 to 5 on each exercise. Lastly, rest between 3 to 5 minutes between each set.      Of course, you want to pick large, compound movements.  Additionally, you should make sure that each workout is as much a “full-body” session as possible.  To give you an idea of what an average training wee